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Sunday, May 22, 2005

Businesses, individuals help soccer program reach goals
The Boys and Girls Club of the Kenai Peninsula sends out a big thank you to all who contributed in making this year's indoor soccer program another positive, fun-filled experience for over 600 kids participating in the program.

Cooperation key to solving area challenges
Area policy makers, entrepreneurs and economic development professionals met in Kenai on Friday and Saturday, brought together by the Kenai Peninsula Economic Development District (KPEDD) as part of the organization's annual Peninsula Economic Forum.

Borough sales tax debate yet to be heard
Lengthy testimony over a proposed bed tax and the subsequent assembly debate that eventually approved sending that idea to voters this fall combined to put the Kenai Peninsula Borough Assembly hard up against its midnight legislative deadline Tuesday, forcing the delay of several other ordinances and resolutions until the June 7 meeting.

Starkweather gets 80 years
Justin Starkweather, the man convicted of sexually assaulting and attempting to murder a Soldotna woman in 2002, was sentenced Friday to 80 years in prison with 25 years suspended.
Saying there was no apparent motive for the attack and calling it "more likely a product of instant rage," Kenai Superior Court Judge Charles Cranston said the focus of the sentence is the need to protect society from Starkweather.

Refuge from trash
Approximately 75 volunteers both young and not-so-young turned out Friday to take part in an effort to try and help Mother Nature take care of a little spring cleaning.
The Kenai National Wildlife Refuge is a sprawling, 1.9-million acre expanse of mostly pristine wild land.

Pauline E. Lancaster
Longtime Soldotna resident Pauline E. Lancaster died Friday, May 20, 2005, at Heritage Place in Soldotna. She was 88.

Voices of the Clarion: Governor has jet envy
Some recent shenanigans from the state capital have called to mind a line from an album I bought way back in the 1960s.
No, it wasnt some anti-war pledge penned by Joan Baez, nor did it involve a bunch of surfer boys and girls on the beaches of La-La Land in Southern California.

Small dreams often lead to big things
For this year's graduating seniors, it's time to dream big. Or not.
In today's bigger-is-better and more-is-still-not-enough mentality, graduates would do well to resist the temptation to define their future  and their success  by how big their paycheck is, how much stuff they own and, if their names appear in lights, how bright those lights are.

Driven to learn
Attempting to be in tune with all of her surroundings, Arlyn Query drove down the Kenai Spur Highway on Tuesday narrating everything she observed about what she saw.

Get furry friends fit before hitting big trails
As the days grow longer and the mercury rises, many people head for the hills to enjoy summer weather by hiking.
Five days cooped up at work can leave a person yearning to stretch their legs outdoors on the weekend and it's important to recognize that our canine companions may also yearn to be outside with us after lying around the house all week.

Suns comeback scorches Mavs
DALLAS  Down by 16 points late in the third quarter, the Phoenix Suns weren't worried. They knew they still hadn't hit their stride.

Mets rough up Johnson to even series
NEW YORK  Jose Reyes drove in four runs and the New York Mets roughed up Randy Johnson for 12 hits Saturday in a 7-1 victory over the Yankees, evening the Subway Series at a game apiece.

Shining Star
Soldotnas Ari Goldstein closed out her prep track career by winning the 3,200- and 1,600-meter runs and finishing second in the 800 Friday and Saturday at the state track and field championships at West Valley in Fairbanks.

Homer girls finish fourth
Now that the Homer girls soccer team has this winning-games-at-state thing down, look out.
In their previous two trips to the state soccer tournament, the Mariners did not win a game.
After losing the opening game of this year's tournament on Thursday, Homer came back with a 1-0 win over Palmer Friday at Dimond High School and a 3-1 win over Wasilla Saturday at Anchorage Football Stadium to take fourth place at state.

Skyview boys bow out
It's usually a good thing to be a team that can envision itself in the state finals.
When such a team has no shot at the state finals and is playing to get to a fourth-place game, though, things can turn bad.
The Skyview boys soccer team lost 2-0 to West on Friday in the semifinals of the state soccer fourth-place bracket at Dimond High School.

Arsenal wins FA Cup on penalties
CARDIFF, Wales  Manchester United missed its chances, and Arsenal went home with the trophy.
Patrick Vieira scored the deciding penalty kick on a rainy Saturday to send Arsenal to its 10th FA Cup title, the first in the 124th final of soccer's oldest cup competition to be settled by a shootout.